Starting Out
by Mystrothedefender
Summary: Edward Nigma is trying desperately to reform, but every time he gets on the right track something ruins it for him, now only Batman can help him.


**This is my first BatmanRiddler fic! Yay!**

Edward shivered as he walked through the dark night, buttoning his jacket and digging his hands into his pockets, shrinking himself to try to stop himself from shivering.

He flinched as he heard a noise behind him, he grit his teeth as he turned to see the source of the noise. He frowned at the sight; three large men approaching him, obviously armed, hoping to mug him or something.

They shouted incoherently, they were drunk, stumbling along. Edward exhaled loudly, "What was that? You'll have to speak a little clearer," he frowned, readying himself for a fight.

They didn't reply but their pace increased, Edward frowned, "Shit," he whispered to himself. He had hoped that this wouldn't happen, he'd been so good, kept a low profile, not done anything 'wrong' in over a month, what a shame that streak would be broken in an act of self defence.

He jolted as a black mass dropped down a few feet from him, throwing itself at the thugs, leaving them unconscious in a matter of minutes.

Edward huffed gently as the last thug hit the ground, "Thank you for that but I could have handled that myself."

"I've not heard from you in months, Edward," Batman growled, turning to the green-clad man, emotionless as always.

Edward shrugged, "Yeah, I know… I've been busy."

"Doing what?"

"Nothing illegal."

Batman approached him, he tensed slightly but tried not to let it show. "You were talking about becoming a private detective, I thought you'd be in touch?"

Edward cast his eyes to the floor, "Yeah, I…I thought about it."

"You decided against it?" Batman asked, seeming oddly interested, Edward didn't think he cared that much about his decision.

"Not exactly," Edward shrugged, backing away as Batman moved closer.

"Then what? How are you surviving Edward? Or are you living on the streets, again?"

"I've never lived on the streets," Edward mumbled, shaking his head.

Batman straightened up, "Don't lie to me, Nigma."

Edward stood still, still visibly shivering, refusing to speak. He didn't want to admit how badly he was doing; no one would hire him and he had burned all bridges with his old 'friends'. He didn't want to associate with them anymore, but no one else wanted to associate with him.

Batman seemed to have relaxed slightly, sensing that the man was hiding something. "You know I have a place you can stay, if you need it."

Edward shook his head, "I don't need your charity, Batman. I can survive on my own."

Batman frowned softly, "Edward. Come with me."

Edward shook his head again, standing firm, he didn't need help, he didn't want help.

"Edward," Batman half-growled, "Come with me."

"I've not done anything wrong," Edward said quietly, stepping back again.

"I'm not saying you have. I want to help you."

"You can't help me," Edward frowned.

"I can try. Come with me, Edward," Batman said sternly, reaching out to take the man's wrist. He didn't protest, though he did struggle slightly as the vigilante began to pull him towards the car.

He sat without a word, refusing to look at Batman as the man closed the door and sat in his own seat.

He was almost silent as the car sped through the streets, Batman kept glancing at him, making him edgy, uneasy.

"What happened, Edward?" Batman inquired, trying his best to sound friendly and unintimidating.

"Nothing," Edward said in his usual self-righteous tone.

"What do you mean nothing?" Batman asked, still trying to sound non-threatening, "When I last talked to you you had a plan… you were renting an apartment and looking for a job."

"Well," Edward shook his head, "It turned out I owed people a lot of money, and when they'd taken what I had they spread shit about me… No one has wanted to hire me since."

"Why didn't you tell someone?" Batman asked, still glancing between the road and his 'captive'.

Edward's eyebrow twitched upward, "You mean you? Why would I tell you? Like you would ever help me…"

Edward would never admitted to needing help even if he thought Batman would have helped, honestly he hadn't expected this. He wasn't even sure where Batman was taking him but it had to be better than sleeping on the floor of an abandoned building.

"That's what I'm doing now, isn't it?" Batman asked, unable to stop a slightly growl shadowing his voice. He pulled the car into a long alleyway and stopped, Edward frowned and looked around; there wasn't enough room to open his door. Why had Batman brought him here?

He jumped and held back a gasp as the car started to slide towards the wall, and the wall lifted to take it, and he found himself inside a dark grey panelled room. He looked around; there was a small apartment-like space at the other end of the building; a tv, a computer, a bed.

He frowned as he stepped out of the car and Batman led him across the oddly massive space, unsure what to make of all this.

Only now, in the light, could Bruce see what a state Edward was in: covered in dirt, his shirt ripped in a few places, bruises covering the skin what little skin was visible.

"What is this place?" the man asked, slightly startled by the echo his voice produced in the large space.

"This is where I rest during the night if I am unable to get home," Batman informed. "The address is 225 westlane. You can use it for now."

"You're giving me an apartment?" Edward asked breathlessly, frowning hard, "Just like that?"

Batman shook his head, "No. I own this place. If I find out you are doing anything illegal, anything, in here I will not allow you back."

Edward looked at the odd setup, "This is unnecessary, I told you, I don't need your help."

Batman frowned at him, it was obvious that he was lying, why didn't he want to accept help from him? Would he rather live on the streets?

"You don't have to stay here," Batman added, "But this place is here if you want to use it."

There was a long silence as Edward looked around, broken by Batman's words: "There's a shower through that door. And clothes in the draw under the bed, though I doubt they will fit you."

Edward frowned to himself, as if fighting with a voice in his head, before he threw his jacket onto the bed, "… I think I might need a shower," he said quietly to himself, seeming to have dispelled any doubts he had. Honestly, after weeks of living rough the idea of sleeping in a bed, in clean clothes after having a warm shower seemed like heaven.

Batman nodded, "I'll leave you to it, then. " He turned to walk back to the car, "I'll be back in about half an hour," he informed.

Batman got back in the car and retuned to the road.

He wasn't sure if he'd done the right thing, leaving Edward alone, but that base was one he didn't use often, didn't keep anything important in, didn't care about losing. But he did trust Edward, as much as he ever could given what he had done.

He had seen the tapes and read the profiles and Edward really did seem to be cured.

He needed to know that he could trust him, and he wanted Edward to trust him in return, this seemed like the perfect opportunity.

**I hope you enjoyed it! Please leave a review.**


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